Is art style more important then graphics?

I'm kinda torn on whats more important to me. Yes, of course I would like both to be great but more often then not I find myself noticing that games are really good in one or the other. I would consider myself a graphics whore, games like killzone 2, mgs 4, and GTA are super stunning and make you feel like your in the next generation. but other games like Splosion man, saints row, world of warcraft, and even bioshock have amazing art. The art I feel can send more of a message and impart more of the developer's intentions. I would say that developers need to focus on art first and try their best to make the graphics fit.   I feel that Trine is one of those games that is visually stunning and you can't help but say "wow" but ultimately, the art is very stereotypical (except for the knight) and is a great game because of the mechanics and visuals not the art style. I bring up Trine to make an argument not to discuss it. I personally love it.

I'm kinda torn on whats more important to me. Yes, of course I would like both to be great but more often then not I find myself noticing that games are really good in one or the other. I would consider myself a graphics whore, games like killzone 2, mgs 4, and GTA are super stunning and make you feel like your in the next generation. but other games like Splosion man, saints row, world of warcraft, and even bioshock have amazing art. The art I feel can send more of a message and impart more of the developer's intentions. I would say that developers need to focus on art first and try their best to make the graphics fit.   I feel that Trine is one of those games that is visually stunning and you can't help but say "wow" but ultimately, the art is very stereotypical (except for the knight) and is a great game because of the mechanics and visuals not the art style. I bring up Trine to make an argument not to discuss it. I personally love it.

I always thought artistic style fell under graphics when scoring a game.

Artistic style should compliment the graphics.

They should be kept seperate when scoring a game. If a game looks like shit yet has an interesting art style, thats an A for effort and an F for failure. Team Fortress is a great example of a beautiful game with a great art style. 

Pour on the style and pour on the anti-aliasing and poly counts. Can't have one without the other and expect to succeed.

" They should be kept seperate when scoring a game. If a game looks like shit yet has an interesting art style, thats an A for effort and an F for failure. Team Fortress is a great example of a beautiful game with a great art style.  "

" @threeolivez: thats exactly my point. Both Killzone and MGS4 are going for realism over art style and that is impressive in its self.  "

both Killzone and MGS4 are head and shoulders above anything i have seen in the realism department. Aside from Heavy Rain or Forza and GT, i dont see anything that comes close. (crysis excluded) "

TF2 in my opinion is one of the best looking games in our generation and i think it compares well with killzone 2 and call of duty 4

You could have the best looking game on paper, but what is it if you don't have graphics to support it?

I'd say so, but I wouldn't disregard the impact that graphics can have on a game.  WoW is a good example of art style keeping the polygon count negligible (for the most part).  Games like Ratchet and Clank Future, and I'd say even Street Fighter 4, that can blend graphical prowess with great art style are really the most eye-catching, I think though.

Eh, graphics include style. It's just the overall aesthetic result that is judged as graphics, and that includes everything, from how efficient the engine is, keeping the frame rate high at all times, to how pleasant it is to the eye. WoW had low polycounts but when it was first out it looked spectacular thanks to the style, despite the lack of normal maps, real time shadows, or whatever shit the latest FPS had to showcase. Yet you didn't see it and go "oh god, his face is made with just 5 polygons, and the texture resolution is so low" or something. You saw it and went "this looks cool and runs so smooth, sweet" or whatever. Great style, great animations, world detail, variety, everything looked solid. Ok, now it looks a little more outdated (still solid though) but it's been years since launch. Diablo 3 will be on similar terms once it's released, going by the content we've seen so far. It won't look like Doom 4, but it sure as hell will look sweet, coherent, pleasing and deserve top marks...

Also, realism can have a style too. Killzone 2 doesn't look anything like MGS4 for example. It still takes skill to have a pleasant aesthetic result, everything has to match, the characters, environments, effects, animations, gameplay elements, everything. It's not like "oh, they just made it realistic, how lazy" or something, and it's not like everything it's photo realistic, compare it for example with the visuals of something like Armed Assault or Crysis, they all have a different style and very different overall aesthetic feel, despite all going for "realism" or whatever. Every artist has a different idea on what's important, the result will rarely be so similar. Unrealistic stuff can look generic and bland too if there's no care.

Money controls next-gen graphics. Art style is the poor man's game. When wanting more... it takes more, but people buy less.

And as:

 @LiquidPrince said:

" Artistic style should compliment the graphics. "

" @Al3xand3r:  realism is the style its that killzone 2 mgs4 and crysis all failled to reach realism so they all look different. "

Obviously that depends on the game. But I do think that without good artists, you won't be able to make your graphics good at all. 

Cutting edge graphics become dull, but good art is forever.

Well what can I tell you olivez, they made that choice, perhaps to add to the convincing factor, and it seems they pleased most people.

And no iea, I can't reword it, go play Half-Life 2 and try to understand. Or don't.

Mirror's Edge was my favourite looking game of all time because of it's awesome art style. Not only in the main game, but also in the DLC.

The graphics should fit the art style. If the art style the game was going for was "cartoon" or whatever, you shouldn't have the graphics end up looking like Crysis, they should end up looking like WoW or TF2.

When people say a game has good artistic style, I always think the game looks good for the limited graphics it has. For example, Castle Crasher, its very cartoony and the graphics arn't eye poping but it still looks good.

Tales of Vesperia is a prime example. Or something like Okami. It's not all about the graphics.

" @Al3xand3r: so... in my estimation, halflife 2 is better then killzone 2 and crysis. its better because the art style presents more of a story then those games. I really want to look at killzone but play halflife. "

A good balance is preferential (e.g. Valkyria Chronicles). Tilting one way or the other isn't a bad thing though.

I like art style more then actual graphics.

I think the art style should always come first then the graphics should be built around it. Look at games like ICO, Shadow of the Colossus and Okami. I am sure the development team first established the art style then integrated the graphics to fir the art. 

I consider them to be generally the same thing.

"@Akeldama: Right, but do you want the comedy of team fortress or the realism of killzone, wheres the balance?

"

in a perfect world the 2 would compliment each other.

persona 4 has a great art style.

@velvetelvis said:

" in a perfect world the 2 would compliment each other. "

" Cutting edge graphics become dull, but good art is forever. "

" They should be kept seperate when scoring a game. If a game looks like shit yet has an interesting art style, thats an A for effort and an F for failure. Team Fortress is a great example of a beautiful game with a great art style.  "

" Artistic style should compliment the graphics. "

I think I like Gameplay more than art style and graphics.  Because a good game generally is a fun game.  I totally need to get myself an Atari2600.